1. Advanced Cloud Services
Development (PaaS)
Vitor Ciaramella Azure Summit Brazil 2013
Technical Evangelist, Microsoft
http://vic.ms
http://vic.ms

2. Cloud Services
User environment Internet environment
CNAME
Users Apps / DNS www.myapp.net
Browsers Server myapp.cloudapp.net
50.63.202.28
www.myapp.com
Dev. environment Windows Azure environment
Load endpoints
Balance
Developer
r
MyAp Cloud Service myapp
MyAp MyAp MyAp
p p
.csconfi
p p
.csdef MyAp .csde .csconfi Production
myapp
g
.csconfi
g
.csconfi
g
p f g Dis Dis Dis
Deploy k k k
.csconfi Staging MyAp
3f2504e0-4f89-11d3-9a0c-0305e82c3301 p
g .csconfi
g
Dis
Dis k
Endpoints k
definitions VM Image HW Specs
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3. Automate
Cloud d
Service Stateless
s = Virtual
Machines
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4. Average usage of Cloud Services
New applications Existing web applications
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5. Advanced Scenarios
Windows Services, Console or GUI applications
including Tomcat, JBoss, Lucene, Solr, Apache, Hadoop, and etc.
Specific Windows Server / IIS configuration
including hosts file, Registry, IIS Media Services, multiple SSL Certificates,
custom IIS AppPool, and etc.
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6. Challenges
Installation, Setup and Configuration
Stateful Memory
Stateful Disk
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7. Installation, Setup
and Configuration
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8. Install, Setup, Config: possible
solutions
Use the VM Role
Create a local VHD with Windows Server
Install, setup and configure your application and server
Upload the VHD as a VM Role disk image
Automate the installation, the setup and configuration
Create an script/code to automate the installation, the setup and configuration
Run it with
Startup Tasks
Role.OnStart
Role.Run
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9. Automate the installation
It depends on the installer technology.
Some applications can be installed simply by copying their files…
For Windows Installer:
msiexec.exe /qn /i SQLSysClrTypes.msi /l*v log.txt
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10. Automate the setup / configuration
It depends on the application.
Some applications can configured simply by overwriting their config files…
For the Windows Registry:
regedit MyRegistryEntriesToBeImported.reg
For IIS:
%windir%system32inetsrvappcmd set config -section:applicationPools
-applicationPoolDefaults.processModel.idleTimeout:00:00:00
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11. Automate the setup / configuration
Most Windows Server and IIS configurations can be also changed by using:
Powershell
PS IIS:SitesDemoSiteDemoApp> set-webconfiguration
"/system.webServer/handlers/add[@path='*.aspx']/@path“
-value "*.mspx“
.NET Managed APIs:
using (var serverManager = new ServerManager())
{
var bindingInfo = "*:443:ssl2.myapp.com";
var certStore = (new X509Store(StoreName.My, StoreLocation.LocalMachine)).Name;
var site = serverManager.Sites["MySite"];
if (site != null)
{
var binding = site.Bindings.Add(bindingInfo, certHash, certStore);
binding.SetAttributeValue("sslFlags", 1);
serverManager.CommitChanges();
}
}
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12. Running the automated script/code
Startup Tasks
Simple: Synchronous execution, one-by-one
Foreground: Asynchronous execution, keeps the role running
Background: Asynchronous execution, does not keep the role running
<Startup>
<Task taskType="simple" commandLine="startupstartup.cmd" executionContext="elevated">
<Environment>
<Variable name="azurestoragename" value="mystorage" />
</Environment>
</Task>
</Startup>
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13. Running the automated script/code
Role, RoleEntryPoint
OnStart: Role stays busy until completion (doesn’t receive requests), up to 15 minutes
Run: Role recycles when exit this method (so, keep it running). Ready to receive requests.
OnStop: Before role stops (clean up), up to 30 seconds
Execution Context:
<Runtime executionContext="elevated“ />
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14. Stateful Memory
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15. Stateful Memory: possible solutions
Rewrite/change your code to not reuse state from subsequent requests
Rewrite/change your code to save the state in a persistent or semi-persistent
storage
Use Blob or Table Storage
Use SQL Database
Use Windows Azure Caching (recommended)
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16. Stateful Memory with Azure Caching
Add the references to the Azure Caching assemblies.
Edit your web.config or app.config file with:
<dataCacheClients>
<dataCacheClient name="default" maxConnectionsToServer="1">
<hosts>
<host name=“myapp.cache.windows.net" cachePort="22233" />
</hosts>
<securityProperties mode="Message">
<messageSecurity authorizationInfo="YWNzOmh0dHBzOi8vdG…">
</messageSecurity>
</securityProperties>
</dataCacheClient>
</dataCacheClients>
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17. Stateful Memory with Azure Caching
To automatically save the ASP.NET session on the Azure Caching, edit your
web.config with:
<configuration>
<system.web>
<sessionState mode="Custom" customProvider="DistributedSessionProvider"
compressionEnabled="false">
<providers>
<add name="DistributedSessionProvider"
type="Microsoft.Web.DistributedCache.DistributedCacheSessionStateStoreProvider,Microsoft
.Web.DistributedCache" cacheName="default" applicationName=“MyApp" useBlobMode="false"/>
</providers>
</sessionState>
</system.web>
</configuration>
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18. Stateful Memory with Azure Caching
Access the Azure Caching programmatically, if you need:
var cacheFactory = new DataCacheFactory();
var myCache = cacheFactory.GetDefaultCache();
var key = "DataAtual";
var cachedObject = myCache.Get(key);
if (cachedObject != null)
{
var value = (DateTime) cachedObject;
}
else
{
var value = DateTime.Now.Date;
myCache.Put(key, value, TimeSpan.FromSeconds(15));
}
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19. Stateful Disk
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20. Stateful Disk: possible solutions
Rewrite/change your code to save the state in a persistent storage
Use Blob or Table Storage (recommended)
Use SQL Database
Use Azure Drive
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21. Stateful Disk with Azure Drive
Create a VHD and store it in the Blob Storage.
Mount the VHD as local drive in each instance.
Attention: Only one instance can mount it with Read/Write access.
MyApp MyApp MyApp MyApp
.csconfig .csconfig .csconfig .csconfig
Disk Disk Disk Disk
Disk Disk Disk Disk
Blob Storage Disk.vhd
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22. Stateful Disk with Azure Drive
Sample Solr/Lucene scenario
Cloud Service Cloud Service Cloud Service
Instance Instance Instance
Query Query Query
Read only Read only Read only
VM
Disk Disk Disk
Index
Read write
R/W Mount
Blob Storage Disk.vhd Disk
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23. Stateful Disk with Azure Drive
How to mount a read-only (snapshotted) drive:
var localResource = RoleEnvironment.GetLocalResource("LocalDriveCache");
CloudDrive.InitializeCache(localResource.RootPath, localResource.MaximumSizeInMegabytes);
var storageAccount = CloudStorageAccount.FromConfigurationSetting(“LuceneVHDs");
var client = storageAccount.CreateCloudBlobClient();
var container = new CloudBlobContainer("vhds", client);
var pageBlob = container.GetPageBlobReference(“lucene.vhd");
var drive = new CloudDrive(pageBlob.Uri, storageAccount.Credentials);
drive = new CloudDrive(drive.Snapshot(), storageAccount.Credentials);
var driveLetter = drive.Mount(localResource.MaximumSizeInMegabytes, DriveMountOptions.None);
//e.g.: driveLetter = “H:”
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24. Stateful Disk with Azure Drive
Delete the snapshot after using it (Role.OnStop)
Use additional logic to “clean-up” unused/old snapshots.
How to list snapshots of a blob:
var pageBlob = container.GetPageBlobReference(“lucene.vhd");
var snapshots = container.ListBlobs(new BlobRequestOptions()
{
BlobListingDetails = BlobListingDetails.Snapshots,
UseFlatBlobListing = true,
}).OfType<CloudPageBlob>().Where((blob) => blob.SnapshotTime.HasValue &&
blob.Uri.Equals(pageBlob.Uri)).OrderByDescending((blob)=>blob.SnapshotTime).ToList();
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25. Automated
Configuration and
Monitoring
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26. Automated Configuration
Role.OnStart
RoleEnvironment.Changing += RoleEnvironment_Changing;
Role
void RoleEnvironment_Changing(object sender, RoleEnvironmentChangingEventArgs e)
{
MyApplyChanges(e.Changes);
e.Cancel = MyCheckIfNeedsToReboot();
}
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27. Automated Monitoring
Role.OnStart
RoleEnvironment.StatusCheck += RoleEnvironment_StatusCheck;
Role
void RoleEnvironment_StatusCheck(object sender, RoleInstanceStatusCheckEventArgs e)
{
var isHealthy = CheckMyHealth();
if (!isHealthy) e.SetBusy();
}
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28. Other Tips
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29. Reduce the size of the Package
Put static files (images, videos, JavaScript, CSS) in the Blob Storage. Adjust
the URLs to these resources.
Put installers and large executables in the Blob Storage. Download these
files locally using Startup Tasks / Role.OnStart
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30. Prefer Async Processing
Use the Queue Storage or Service Bus (Queues, Topics and Notification
Hub) to distribute work and scale processing
Use the .NET framework 4.5 parallel and async features
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31. Proactive Caching
All instances read from the cache
One instance is responsible to update the cache periodically
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32. Distribute Users and Content
Use CDN to distribute and cache the content (Blobs / Web Roles)
Use the Traffic Manager to direct users to the closest datacenter
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33. Advanced Cloud Services
Development (PaaS)
Vitor Ciaramella Azure Summit Brazil 2013
Technical Evangelist, Microsoft
http://vic.ms
http://vic.ms